What We Have Learned
by HalfMagyk
Summary: Temari and Shikamaru have a special sort of morethanfriendship...the kind that only they will ever really understand. But even they have things to learn, about friendship, love, and each other. Oneshot, 50 themed sentences.


A/N Just so that you don't get confused, I'll let you know that this fic switches viewpoints every five sentences.

Have fun. Hope you like it.

**Waiting**

There was nothing interesting or worthwhile to do until Temari came to Konoha, at least in Shikamaru's opinion.

**Flight**

_If I was a cloud, I could just float over to Sunagakure and pick her up…_ Shikamaru imagined.

**Counting**

It was silly how he actually counted the days down to her return, and even sillier the way he wondered if she was doing the same thing.

**Sneeze**

Shikamaru remembered her voice, and her laugh, but most of all, he remembered her sneeze; it was so dainty and ladylike, the opposite of her.

**Heart**

He remembered her head against his chest, bobbing to the beat of his heart; he was sure hers was beating in time.

**Cool**

Temari rubbed her arms against the wind; it was unusually cold in Sunagakure.

**Relief**

"Temari-sama, you are due to be dispatched to Konoha in a few days, so stand by."

**Sky**

_Such a beautiful day,_ Temari thought, _perfect for cloud-watching..._

**Handwriting**

She wrote the letter slowly, choosing her words carefully and trying to write neatly, for as much as he said he liked her handwriting, it was in truth utterly unreadable.

**Report**

"Temari-sama, the Kazekage is asking for you; it's about time for your trip to Konoha."

**Lamp**

It was already getting dark when her letter finally came; Shikamaru had to read it by lamplight.

**Closed**

Shikamaru's father, walking by his room, noticed the door was closed; when he opened it, he saw his son watching the moon with a piece of paper in hand, and he closed it again.

**Ribbon**

During the Summer Festival, Shikamaru had gone out and bought four bright blue-and-red ribbons; although he didn't mention who they were for, his team and his father both could guess.

**Box**

Shikamaru felt closed in, sitting in his room, as if he was in a box, alone and wishing for someone to come open it and find him.

**Sigh**

For three days straight, all anyone heard Shikamaru doing (through shogi games, on missions, at the barbeque) was sighing, over and over, wistfully.

**Bracelet**

Temari stood at her window and looked out at the land beyond Suna, trying to see to Konoha but not getting any closer than touching the bracelet on her wrist, the one that he had given her.

**Running**

Although Temari was no slowpoke, her run toward Konoha seemed twice as brisk as usual; though it seemed to take twice as much time.

**Make-believe**

Anytime Temari stopped to rest, she would imagine her conversations with him, what she would say to him after not seeing him for so long…and she would try to imagine his answers, although she knew that her make-believe was probably far from what would actually occur.

**Stunned**

Temari didn't even realize that she had fallen asleep, until she heard a voice in her ear, "Don't move an inch or I'll slit your throat."

**Impact**

She jerked her head around, only to feel something heavy and hard hit her head—before she blacked out.

**Answer**

"Temari…Temari…Temari, if you can hear me, please answer…please…stay alive…"

**Cleaning**

Walking into the room, Shikamaru said, "Ok, I cleaned the bathroom; _now_ will you consider staying at my house while you're here?"

**Smart**

He was supposed to be smart, but when he had found her knocked out in the woods, he had panicked, not knowing what to do; now he was doing his best to make sure she was comfortable.

**Scream**

That's what he had done, he had screamed like a baby; he was sure that she was dead.

**Weather**

And the rain hadn't helped.

**Drink**

Temari had wanted to have sake for a while—screw the age restrictions, when she was with Shikamaru nothing seemed to matter.

**Sunset**

The last rays of the sun were refracted by the empty drink bottles, casting a scattered light onto the passed-out couple, lying on top of the other in the grassy field.

**Pebble**

She found a shiny pebble down by the bridge; it was beautiful, like nothing she'd ever seen before, and she gave it to him, saying, "I saw this and it reminded me a bit of you."

**Throw**

Temari watched two boys playing catch, back and forth, and thought about what a perfect metaphor it was for her relationship with him; they went back and forth, back and forth, never really getting anywhere, just retracing their steps…but maybe that was all right...

**Rustle**

The noise of rustling leaves behind her signaled that a certain dark-haired Chuunin was approaching, and she turned to meet him.

**Feather**

Shikamaru brought her a fallen bird, and they instantly got to work taking care of it, work that would last three days until the bird departed, leaving behind one feather for them to share, and remember.

**New**

Shikamaru took care to notice new things, subtle changes in her, every day, without her telling him: "You're using the ribbons I gave to tie back your hair, aren't you?"

**Drawing**

No matter how much Shikamaru tried to tell her he couldn't draw a straight line, she kept on him until he produced a halfway decent sketch of an oak tree—and he decided to try it again sometime.

**Book**

No matter how much she tried to tell Shikamaru that she wasn't the reading type, he kept on her until she finished a rather large, complicated book of his—and she said she might borrow another.

**Lesson**

Shikamaru was surprised to find that even Temari could teach him things: how to win arguments when you don't really know anything about the topic, how to order people around without coming off as bossy, how to kiss—and for the latter, she was the best teacher he could think of.

**Window**

Sitting next to him in his room, his arm around her shoulders, Temari glanced out the window and remembered the days in Suna when she looked out windows alone.

**Breeze**

A breeze in the sandy village was chilling and foreboding, but a breeze in Konoha only warmed up his hugs in comparison.

**Meditation**

Sitting across the board from him, Temari drummed her fingers on the floor impatiently, asking him, "Hey, are you thinking or meditating?"

**Mending**

Temari's fan was torn, and she as was mending it carefully, she caught him looking at her—she smiled as he looked away.

**Hatred**

There was something about that Ino girl that Temari just couldn't stand, especially the way that she talked to him and flipped her hair this way and that and _get away from him, you Sasuke fangirl reject!_

**Thunder**

Shikamaru knew that she usually didn't believe in signs, but when the thunder clapped as he told her that he was leaving on an emergency mission, both of them felt something ominous.

**Losing**

As Shikamaru stared at the ninja across from him, he had a premonition—he was going to lose.

**Far**

His premonitions were usually correct, but in this case, to lose was to die—and he refused to die when he was so far from her…

**Missing**

As he lay on the ground, his life ticking away, he realized what he had missed—his chances to tell her he loved her…which he hadn't thought to do before.

**Light**

The last thing Shikamaru saw in his mind was her face…and then the light…and no more.

**Empty**

When they told Temari, she screamed, then denied it, and now she had nothing to do but to accept it—and the emptiness that filled her now.

**Wish**

"I swear, I swear on my life that if you come back, I will never ask for anything again…don't let it be true…reverse this hell…come rescue me…that is all I ask for…please…please…"

**Sit**

Temari had to sit quietly at the funeral—she had to keep her eyes from leaking shameful tears, she had to keep her voice from screaming his name, she had to sit and stay silent, she had to, she had to, she had to…

**Goodbye**

"I miss you already…I can't believe it…I don't know how long it'll take to sink in…but I…I just can't think of anything to say…only…only a few things…like…like…goodbye..."

**End**

"And…I love you, Nara Shikamaru."

_It's never too late to say "I love you."_

A/N: This was a bit of a challenge. Essentially it's a ShikaTema fic broken up into sentences. Nothing more. And since apparently I enjoy torturing characters, I did have Shikamaru die (In case the ending doesn't make it clear). Happily Ever After doesn't always do it for me.

The list is mine. I made up each one. If you want to use this list, ask me.

I hope you liked it, I hope it touched you in some way, sll that jazz. Thanks for reading.


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